BERLIN, Aug. 16 /PRNewswire/ -- Game Developers Conference Europe® 2010 (GDC Europe) has opened its doors at the Cologne Congress Center East in Cologne, Germany. Produced by UBM TechWeb Game Network, organizers of the leading Game Developers Conference® series, GDC Europe is the largest professionals-only game event in Europe, and has increased in scope compared to its inaugural debut event in 2009, encompassing a robust selection of keynotes, lectures, panels, and sessions. GDC Europe returns to Cologne, Germany on August 16-18, 2010 for three days of learning, networking, and inspiration. For more information on GDC Europe visit: www.gdceurope.com.

"We are very pleased with the opening day of GDC Europe," said Frank Sliwka GDC Europe Event Director and UBM TechWeb VP European Business Development. "We hosted several great talks today including our keynote addresses from Bo Wang and Warren Spector. GDC Europe also received a popular response to our newest conference addition: the Games & Movies/TV Workshop."

Highlights of today's activity include:

    --  Talking in a packed keynote, Creative Director of Disney's Junction
        Point studio Warren Spector delivered a lyrical discussion of video
        games and how the medium should -- and shouldn't -- learn from other
        media to shine in its own right.  Referencing film, radio, comic books
        and board games, Spector illustrated the importance and power of the
        user's imagination and videogames' 'power to transport' - the ability to
        become another character entirely, and how they can immerse people in
        worlds that appear completely believable.
    --  At his keynote on Monday, Tencent Games VP Bo Wang discussed how the
        billion-dollar revenue Chinese tech/game company has risen to the top of
        the pack, citing massive growth rates and key routes to success in Asia.
        Wang noted than in the six months to the end of June 2010, the gigantic
        Chinese-headquartered firm, which deals with instant messaging, virtual
        currency, and video games as its major parts, had revenues of $1.3
        billion U.S. dollars.  Wang noted that Chinese gamers have a much lower
        disposable income, so there are unique ways Tencent attracts these
        gamers.  Tencent tries to have 1,000 hours available at launch in its
        typical MMORPGs, and also encourages gamers to have fun by playing
        against each other in games. As Tencent also has the top instant
        messaging service in China, plus a top free email service, a massive web
        portal at QQ.com, and even a search engine, cross-marketing from all of
        Tencent's properties seems to have catapulted the firm to the top of the
        pile in the Chinese market.
    --  In the one-day Games and Movies/TV Workshop, Jorg Tittel of BreakThru
        Films spoke about his multiplatform-vision.  Discussing how his vision
        is not a marketing idea, and based more on creativity than on a business
        model. Tittel feels that the industry has to learn from the younger
        generations who already live in a multiplatform way.  After defining
        three important problems--licensing models, lack of communication and
        marketing-driven business--and the challenges of needing to reeducate
        the industries, determine where the budgets come from and getting legal
        counsel from both sides at an early point, Tittel focused on the main
        challenge--mining new creative talent, people who understand both film
        and games.  Tittel said that the concepts of Convergence and
        Multiplatform shouldn't be mainly about the sharing of assets, but about
        sharing a common vision. And for that, he feels we need a new generation
        of film- AND gamemakers who care about and have been educating
        themselves about both platforms equally, and who understand the rules of
        both and respect them equally
    --  In the first of the "Focus Russia" series of sessions, Dmitry Lyust and
        Konstantin Popov gave an overview about the Russian market concerning
        PC-, Console- and Online Gaming, providing statistics including the fact
        that the current market value is $820M USD and predictions about the
        growth of Russia's online games market.  Predictions are that Russia's
        online games market will grow from $223M USD in 2009 to $400-410M USD by
        2012, and that the Russian market for casual games will grow from $32 M
        USD to 42 M USD by the end of this year.  Lyust and Popov discussed how
        there is Russia's recent welcoming climate for business and investments
        from abroad. The government sees the economic gain of the games industry
        and plans to support and develop it as part of a governmental plan for
        modernization the country.  They also discussed government plans to
        build up a "Russian Silicon Valley" inside a special economic zone near
        Moscow.
    --  In a session titled "Rethinking a Studio for the digital Space," THQ
        Digital creative director Don Whiteford discussed the publisher's
        burgeoning specialization in the digital space, discussing learnings
        from his rebranded THQ studio and revealed its debut XBLA/PSN title, top
        down vehicle combat title Red Faction: Battlegrounds.  Whiteford also
        revealed a companion product for THQ's key Red Faction franchise, Red
        Faction: Battlegrounds, a topdown car, mech and rover combat title for
        Xbox Live Arcade and PlayStation Network with up to four players on the
        same screen. In addition, various achievements in the game -- which was
        built by a core team of just four people -- will unlock unique elements
        in Red Faction: Armageddon.
    --  BioWare's Dr. Ray Muzyka and Dr. Greg Zeschuk delivered an account Q&A
        style of a look back on the founding of their studio and the creation of
        the seminal Baldur's Gate franchise.  The duo referenced their early
        years inexperienced in conventional game business yet success with
        Baldur's Gate through their passion and a love of the art.  The duo
        ended with a teaser of some potentially exciting new titles, as yet
        unannounced, coming out of the Virginia-based BioWare Mythic office that
        currently operates stalwart, still-profitable titles such as Warhammer
        Online and Ultima Online.

In addition to the conference content, GDC Europe provides several opportunities for creative exchange and business development, with venues including the GDC Europe Expo Floor, VIP Lounge, and the GDC Europe Business Lounge at gamescom, plus a host of industry parties. More than forty exhibitors and sponsors from Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands, Russia, Sweden, the UK and the USA have registered for the exhibitor zone measuring 650 square meters. Exhibitors include Crytek, Bigpoint, Epic, Howest University, Imagination Studios and Intel. In addition, GDC Europe will also be hosting for the first time a business Lounge at the accompanying games expo, gamescom, at which Autodesk, Crytek, Epic, Zotac, DigiProtect, Level 3 are confirmed to be exhibiting.

For up to the moment news on GDC Europe visit: www.gdceurope.com.

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    MEDIA CONTACT:
                        Brian Rubin
                        fortyseven communications
                        (212) 391-4707
                        brian@fortyseven.com

                        Susanne Tenzler-Heusler, Europe
                                      +49 (0)173 3786601
                        kontakt@brandvorwerk-pr.de

    GDC EUROPE
     CONTACT:
                         Frank Sliwka, VP European
                         Business Development
                                      +49 (0)171 1288898
                        frank.sliwka@ubm.com

                        Ben Veechai, North America
                        +1-415-947-6280
                        ben.veechai@ubm.com

SOURCE UBM TechWeb Game Network